Putting our differences to work means creating an environment where people, naturally unique and different, can work more effectively in ways that drive new levels of creativity, innovation, problem solving, leadership, and performance in the marketplaces, workplaces, and communities of the world. Debbe Kennedy shows how to make all the dimensions of difference–such as thinking styles, perspectives, experiences, work habits, and management styles, as well as more traditional di…
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This is just a wonderful book. The topic of diversity is one fraught with land mines, but Debbe Kennedy has figured out a way to discuss the issue without stepping on any of them. She makes it clear, for the first time I think, that it’s not just about skin color but about how people see things in different ways and how others can profit by looking from various angles. The stories in this book are particularly rich and should resonate with both managers and employees in every size company. But don’t think it’s just for the workplace; I think it can also be valuable for everyday interactions at home and in the community as well.
The author, Debbe Kennedy has written an excellent book in an area where modern industries and services need a tremendous amount of help. As a corporate director of human resources, I can attest to the strengths that an organization will acquire by following the edicts in this book. The book’s goal is to create an environment and culture where naturally different people work together more effectively as they attain – and surpass – the organizational goals in leadership and performance.
Debbe Kennedy shows how differences can mean much more than just the solidified categories such as race and sex. Her use of real-world examples of varying experiences and styles of management drive home the point that the area of diversity should never be shunned or viewed as a mere consequence but rather as the source of strength for future growth and excellence. In addition, I greatly appreciated the amount of research that went into this tome. This research lends an authorative tone to the work and makes it a compelling study in diversity.
In today’s age of hyper-blending of cultures, this book will be a great asset to those who approach the subject with an open mind and implement the ideas generated in this book. Diversity is the current situation and will grow by leaps and bounds as time progresses. For us to progress, we must learn to tap into this growing well of strength. Those who don’t are sadly doomed to fail.
I would also like to recommend Don’t Bring It to Work: Breaking the Family Patterns That Limit Success and High Altitude Leadership: What the World’s Most Forbidding Peaks Teach Us About Success (J-B US non-Franchise Leadership). Both are excellent managerial material.
I hope you find this review helpful.
Michael L. Gooch, SPHR
Too often diversity programs are seen as extraneous to the core business of the organization. In this powerful book, Debbe Kennedy offers convincing evidence that managing diversity is key to an organization’s ability to innovate and adapt to a rapidly changing world. Using diversity as a strategic advantage requires that we know how to “put our differences to work” –how to align our different ways of thinking and seeing the world to create breakthrough products and solutions. The “Putting our Difference to Work Model” that Debbe describes and illustrates in this book can be applied by any leader in any organization. The examples and case studies she sites ground the model in the real world. She offers tools and techniques that help people with different ways of thinking come together to get things done. The “how to” information in this book is useful and easy to apply, but it is the explanation of why diversity matters that makes this book so compelling. Debbe makes it clear that putting differences to work is the key task of today’s leader.